Read this controversial article and decide whether you need the best High Blood Pressure Monitor

What is the best High Blood Pressure monitor? The boring answer is, it depends. It depends on your needs, usage, and budget. The better question is, do you need a High Blood Pressure monitor? Well, I just bought one under advice from my doctor. At 55, my doctor feels I need one to regularly check my blood pressure as an early warning system. High Blood Pressure, left undiscovered and untreated can be fatal.

Two recent news items made me realize buying a High Blood Pressure monitor is a beneficial investment.

Isabel Granada

The first news item. Isabel Granada, a popular Filipino actress, and singer collapsed suddenly during a ‘meet and greet’ event with her fans in Doha, Qatar. She went into a coma and later passed away. The cause was a brain aneurysm. She was just 41. It must be heart-breaking for her husband and her 14-year-old son.

Isabel Granada

Perhaps, like me, many people were quick to check the meaning of a brain aneurysm. According to a report by Mayo Clinic, a brain aneurysm occurs when a weak spot in your brain’s arterial wall bulges and fills with blood. If it ruptures, it can cause hemorrhagic stroke and is life-threatening. And it is unpredictable and may not show any symptom UNTIL it ruptures.

The causes of a brain aneurysm are unknown. But the risk factors include older age, cigarette smoking, high blood pressure (hypertension), drug abuse, and heavy alcohol consumption.

High blood pressure is a hidden danger. It is a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke – the two leading causes of death in the world. Hence at my age, it’s important to know whether my blood pressure is normal or if high, whether to go on medication. The best way is to check regularly.

These new guidelines mean that the number of U.S. adults considered as having high blood pressure has increased 14% to 46% from 32% previously!

Know Your Blood Pressure – And what to do about it

Here’s a quick summary of the new guidelines and the reasons behind it:

Before 14th Nov 2017, if your blood pressure reading is 140/90, then you have high blood pressure.

Now, if your blood pressure reading is 130/80, you are considered as having high blood pressure!

Blood pressure reading of 120/80 is still considered normal.

The new definitions are drafted to help people take steps to control their blood pressure earlier.

This is preventive medicine.

Even if a person is now considered as having high blood pressure, it does not mean that he or she needs to immediately take medication. Dr. Paul Whelton, M.D., who chaired the committee that wrote the new guideline said, “It’s a yellow light that you need to be lowering your blood pressure, mainly with non-drug approaches.”

However, even if more people will be under medication, there are benefits. According to Kenneth Jamerson, M.D., and a professor of internal medicine and a hypertension specialist at the University of Michigan Health System explained, “Yes, we will label more people hypertensive and give more medication, but we will save lives and money by preventing more strokes, cardiovascular events, and kidney failure.”

It recommends a healthy living style, eating healthier food, exercising, losing weight avoid smoking, drinking alcohol in moderation, decreasing salt intake, and reducing stress as the first line of defense.

He is a staunch proponent of less medicine and adopting a healthier lifestyle.

He acknowledged that the Sprint Study (the basis for the New Guidelines) was well-conducted and of high-quality.

The gist of the study was that the lower target set for someone to be considered as having high blood pressure or hypertension led to a 25% reduction in heart attacks, strokes, heart failures, and cardiovascular deaths.

He is concerned that the participants chosen were in the “higher-than-average-risk for cardiovascular events” and thus they do not reflect the reality of the general population.

Another concern is that the blood pressure reading can be volatile and in the Sprint Study the subjects were allowed 5 minutes to calm down before their blood pressure was taken. This may not reflect the real setting of a busy clinic.

He worries that the new guidelines will result in more people being put on unnecessary medication.

What this means to laypeople like you and me

As controversial as the new guidelines may be, the takeaway for me personally is not more medication but living a healthy lifestyle. Even for those of you who are on medication, a change in your diet and lifestyle will help you to control your high blood pressure.

You may like to assess your blood pressure and cardiovascular health, check out:

34 thoughts on “Read this controversial article and decide whether you need the best High Blood Pressure Monitor”

Hi Song
This is an interesting article. I was already thinking about how to get out a rant against the pharma industry which does its best to get people on medication, but then I saw that you have linked to an article to H. Gilbert Welch who is expressing much of my thoughts.
That doesn’t mean to not use blood pressure devices to check how you are doing.
An example: When my husband came from USA to live with me here in Italy he had a lot of drugs which his doctor wanted him to take – which he did for a lot of years. I suggested to just stop taking them and check insulin and blood pressure daily, which he did. And so we found out that his blood pressure was absolutely ok. Occasionally he checks it now, and it is fine. What a relief!

Sometimes have such a device at home is much better than rely on the occasional measurements taken at the doctor’s when you might be already anxious and expecting the worse. At home you can check in every given moment and find out how you are really doing.

Hai Heidi, yes, there’s always 2 sides to a coin. What you guys did was brilliant! The doctor will recommend certain medication, but we should weigh carefully whether we need to take them. Hence, the insulin and blood pressure readings have help you both to decide confidently to be drugs-free.

My uncle, who’s diabetic, changed his lifestyle; stop drinking and smoking, and started walking briskly for 5 km, 6 times a week, and he was able to stop taking his medication. Of course, one should always consult a doctor before making a drastic decision to go off medication.

I agree with your comments mate, and yes, this is a very helpful post indeed on having potential high blood pressure A monitor to keep a check on this seems like a very good idea. I also love the amount of detail that you have relating to high blood pressure. So, I thank you very much
Simon

Great you find the post helpful. Indeed everyone must keep track of their blood pressure reading as high blood pressure is a silent killer. Hence, a blood pressure monitor is a small investment with life-saving potential!

I was recently purchasing a blood pressure measurement equipment and was wondering between measuring on my upper hand or a simple one which measures only on the hand wrist. I can say from my own health experience that when my blood pressure goes high my eyes are weaker and I need to wear reading glasses. I am not a doctor and can not comment at all, only interesting to read that there are different opinion on this topic.

Happy to know you have a blood pressure monitor. Every home should have one as prevention is better than cure.

I would recommend an upper arm blood pressure monitor as its reading is more accurate. I wonder what’s your blood pressure reading? What does your personal physician says your medication considering the change in blood pressure guidelines?

Hi SJ, yeah medication should be the last resort. In fact both sides of the arguments encourage a healthy lifestyle. I believe in the case of your father, getting a second opinion will be good to find out the best approach to treat his high blood pressure, whether more medication or other non-medical method. Hope he gets better!

As a general rule I would say a blood pressure monitor should last at least 10 years. If your current monitor is still accurate I don’t see the need for change. Unless you want a more accurate monitor then yes may be.

Hi Roopesh, I like your thought that health care must be holistic. So true. It’s never about medication only. A case in point, my uncle (75 year-old) who is diabetic was able to lower his medication intake through his exercise regime, brisk walk for 5 km, 5 times as a week. He is so disciplined in this. Gave up beer drinking too.

And yup every family should have a Blood Pressure monitor at home.

The Upper Arm Blood Pressure monitor is more accurate than the wrist. That’s what I will recommend. That’s why we see most doctors use Upper Arm monitors.

I find your post very useful esp. for those who are borderline hypertensive. I am hypertensive, had been for several years and I am on medication. I am using the Omron blood pressure monitor and it works very well. It helps to watch the food we eat, I agree with you. Only that I am not disciplined. I eat what I want. I monitor myself everyday and I am watchful.

Hi Rebecca, yeah the medicine will help you control your high blood pressure. It’s important to take it regularly. Remember that High Blood Pressure is a silent killer. That’s why I now understand why my doctor insisted I buy a high blood pressure monitor to track my blood pressure over time. Prevention is certainly better than cure!

This is a very informative article here, high blood pressure runs in my family. However, I don’t have it and I don’t think I will get it because I eat healthy, I don’t drink, and I exercise every day. I didn’t know that high blood pressure was changed from 140/90 to 130/80. This doesn’t make sense to me, why was this changed?

Hi friend, thanks for chipping in. Indeed, it was a controversial decision by the American Heart Association that, as if with a stroke of a pen, millions of Americans are now considered as having high blood pressure!

I can understand the reasoning behind the decision. It’s preventive medicine or if I may, the Lesser of the Two Evil. Hence, If someone who is 130/80 who used to be classified as Prehypertension, he or she is now identified as High Blood Pressure / Stage 1. Hence, after some assessment, the physician may put them on medication and this will reduce their chances of dying from heart conditions by 25%.

Then of course, there are dissenting voices like M.D. H. Gilbert Welch, who are pushing for less medication.

The wisest course is to consult your own personal doctor, ask a lot of questions, and then decide.

Thank you for this information. I was not even aware that the AHA and other health professional organizations had updated the recommendations for the diagnosis and management of high blood pressure. So, gone are the days of pre-hypertension. I suppose that people with a BP of 130/80 who do not have cardiovascular risk factors won’t require treatment.
I worry that the new guidelines would put more people people under unnecessary treatment. Considering that many anti-hypertensive drugs have adverse effects, it is a pity that medical professionals would prefer prescribing unnecessary treatment to some persons instead of encouraging those at risk to adopt a healthy lifestyle.
Can I add that I love your list? I’m still struggling with item number 5 (exercise regularly) although I’m already overweight and need to shed at least 4 Kg. I’m trying (actually struggling) to eat less fats and sweets. As for salt consumption, I’ve been able to decrease this to recommended daily requirements.
Again, thanks for the update. I hope this will serve as a point to motivate people that it is necessary to monitor their BPs regularly. Hypertension is a silent killer that can lurk in when it’s least unexpected.

It seems pre-hypertension is now Elevated High Blood Pressure! Yes, unnecessary medication is bad health care. To the credit of the writers of the new guidelines, they recommend a non-medicine approach first. Of course, a frank and open discussion with your doctor is important to determine whether there is a need to go on medication. A person should ask many questions and ultimately decide for themselves what’s the best treatment to adopt.

I can relate to your challenge of doing exercise regularly! I h’ve To confess that for many years I wasn’t doing any exercise. But starting August of last year, I started taking the stairs after a challenge from my brother-in-law. Perhaps that’s the secret to discipline. Inform someone that you’re going for a certain exercise regime. Stick to it! Go Princilla, go! You’ll do well! I’ve confident in you!

I will get back to work soon and hope to achieve my goal within 8 weeks. I hope you have a related post about ‘health habits to reduce cardiovascular risk’ so that I can share my progress. Otherwise, I’ll just email you.

I agree with you, that taking preventive maintenance steps can be a good idea. However people do need to be careful with their findings to ensure that their corrective steps are correct for them.

If someone suffers from say anxiety even a ‘small but’ can become a ‘big but’, so it is possible that they shouldn’t know about the ‘small but’.

I use Kardia Mobile, by AliveCor that is a small credit card size tool in conjunction with my smartphone that is capable of recording ECG readings. I can get a result instantly and if the result requires more attention, I can share those interesting ECG readings with my medical team. I only record ECG readings when something happens as advised by my medical team. I find it great and helpful, knowing that the problem seems to be more “just stress or just anxiety related” rather than heart related.

I like your information about AliveCor Kardia Mobile. It’s something new to me. I immediately check it out. It it recommended to use together with a high blood pressure monitor for a more complete picture of a person’s health. Thanks!

Just last month I went for a thorough heart check. The doctor did a Heart Echo test, an ECG test, and I wore a Holter monitor for 24 hours to measure my heart’s beats. Well, so far so good. Nevertheless, she recommended getting a high blood pressure monitor so that I can check my own readings over time.

Thanks for sharing important information. At my age I feel I don’t have to concern much about high blood pressure but indeed I need have healthier life style as you said. I will keep up with having leafie things and regular exercise! It might affect my blood pressure in the future. I think I need get a monitor for my parents for to prevent major disease..

Ya, living a healthier lifestyle is always the best approach to taking care of ourselves. And we know sometimes it’s easier said than done. Hence, discipline is important. Stick to your exercise program and be healthy! Yup, a blood pressure monitor is a small investment with big returns!

You’re cute in that photo with the blood pressure monitor. I agree with you that we should maintain a healthy lifestyle to stay away from incidents like Isabel had. Sad story of her, too young to leave this world.

We have an old blood pressure monitor here that my parents are using, an Omron brand that runs on triple A battery. I am thinking of replacing it soon with those advertised in Amazon. Also, this post of yours made me more aware of the threats of aneurysm. Thank you.

The story of Isabel Granada is truly sad. And everyone knows living a healthy lifestyle is the best way to live. And the challenge is actually doing it! We could find it very difficult to change our diet. Our family loves coke. One can of coke has 7 tea spoons of sugar! But we’re cutting back. We’re also cutting back on fast food. So I think sometimes we need to take small steps to change.

I’m using Omron blood pressure monitor too. I think you can get a new blood pressure at the local pharmacy. Or a great deal through Lazada.